


Triple Negative

by dawggirl



Category: General Hospital
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-04
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2020-06-09 12:36:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19476052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dawggirl/pseuds/dawggirl
Summary: Ava must deal with a health crisis.





	Triple Negative

Author's Note: So this really doesn't have anything to do with Ava and Morgan. I wrote it as I thought it might be therapeutic for me, and I adapted it for Ava and Morgan. It takes place not in an alternate reality, but not within the confines of what is happening right now. Time period is before I love you's, probably November/December 2013. Rated A for Angst. I own nothing.

Morgan was actually the one who had found it. Or at least noticed it was there. Ava did not take any comfort in that fact since it meant she was so preoccupied with everything else going on that she didn't even realize something was happening to her own body. Or maybe she had noticed, and she decided to simply ignore it. She had felt just fine. Fantastic, in fact. That no doubt had everything to do with who she was sharing her bed with these days.

And so it was after one of these rather lengthy and thoroughly enjoyable sessions that led to the discovery. Morgan was focused on his favorite part of her body. Her "killer rack" as he referred to it, a turn of phrase that made her both roll her eyes and feel secretly flattered at the same time. Now, as she thought about it, those words had a horribly ironic tinge to them.

***************************************************************************************************************

"Ava, what's this?"

"What?"

"This." He led her finger to what he was feeling, a small but definite hard lump.

"Oh, probably nothing." But her heart suddenly felt like it was beating out of her chest, and her mouth went completely dry. She tried to remember the last mammogram she'd had.

"Are you going to get it checked out?"

"Of course." She really didn't want to discuss it with him, they weren't on that kind of level yet, although they had been growing closer. The truth was, she wasn't on that level with anyone in her life. Ava Jerome's friendship circle was pretty limited these days.

She got out of bed and crossed the room to her master bathroom, grabbing her short robe along the way. She stayed in there a while, looking in the mirror, trying to see something that couldn't be seen externally. By the time she came out again, Morgan had fallen back asleep.

***************************************************************************************************************

The next few days both passed in a blur and interminably dragged on. Ava tried to use work as an escape, she stayed longer hours at the gallery, but she didn't end up getting much accomplished. Her mind refused to cooperate, not letting her stray from her fears. She started wondering about all the unknown family history, what with her mother's side being such a blank. The thoughts kept creeping around, how serious is this? Will I get sick? Am I going to die? As bad as the last question was, she thought that maybe she preferred that to everything else she associated with this disease. Her appetite was completely gone, which made it harder to drink as much as she preferred. Not that she let that stop her, this was certainly a time when she just felt like she wanted to blank out everything and drown in an alcohol-fueled haze. A place where she didn't have to think. Or feel.

"Do you want to talk about it?" They were at home, Morgan doing his best to reach out to her, to let her know he was there.

"No, I really don't."

"Are you going to...I mean, do you want me to call Ki-"

"NO! Don't you dare. I don't want her or anyone else knowing about it." But if it really were true, she'd have to let Kiki know. She would be at risk herself of getting it, Ava knew that much from entertainment news about Angelina Jolie.

"Okay, it's just, you can talk to me, you know. I don't want you to have to go through this alone." His eyes looked into hers, the concern evident by his expression. He was probably getting in a little over his head. Morgan had very little experience with cancer, especially breast cancer. The only person he knew who had it was his first roommate's mom at Vanderbilt his freshman year. He had to leave about a month into the semester, when she had a sudden recurrence and died. And he had heard Michael's grandmother, Monica, had it too. Not a very comforting percentage, he thought. One out of two. Fifty percent.

Ava struggled to keep her composure. She was sure if she gave in to her emotions now, she'd become inconsolable. Morgan was saying all the right things, actually. But she despised feeling so weak, so afraid, so helpless. She wasn't scared of hardly anything, Julian could wave a gun in her face and she'd think nothing of it, but the thought of cancer truly frightened her. The doctor hadn't said much, just that she should schedule a mammogram as soon as possible. To which she did, only to find out that they wanted to do a biopsy after looking at the results.

"You know, you're probably better off bailing right now. If this turns out to be something, it's going to get ugly." She tried not to let her mind go there, but images of being bald, sick to her stomach and shriveled up and in pain kept forcing their way in, creeping into her thoughts no matter how much she attempted otherwise. There's no way Morgan would want her that way. Or any man, for that matter. And as someone who prided herself on being a catch to men of all ages, she wanted to distance herself before it was too late.

I suppose I deserve this, she thought to herself. People in her line of work had to develop a callous way of thinking: that others are expendable. So what is this, retribution? Am I being punished for accidentally shooting that Olivia Falconeri, Sonny's latest conquest? Ava silently scoffed at the thought that he was so heartbroken over Connie's death, that he invited her cousin into his bed mere weeks later. But yeah, I'm the one who might get diagnosed with a life-threatening disease, she seethed.

"Don't even start that. You might as well get used to it, because I'm not going anywhere, especially now. Give me a little credit, Ava. I'm not that heartless." He wanted to tell her more, but he kept any further declarations to himself. He wasn't sure what he was feeling lately, only that he had come to care for her much more than just someone with who he had great sex.

Ava sighed and closed her eyes. Every single part of her was exhausted, the sheer overwhelming nature of what she was dealing with had taken over and sapped any energy and strength she possessed, both physically and emotionally. She wasn't up for fighting this battle with him, not tonight anyway. She allowed him to guide her to the couch, holding her in his arms as he did. They sat there for a long while, not speaking, just letting the silence do its job.

**************************************************************************************************************

Sitting in the waiting room for her biopsy, Ava was contemplating googling "breast cancer" on her iPad. Surely, that couldn't be a good idea, she thought. She didn't want to face such a harsh reality, but she thought she needed to prepare herself. Know your enemy, she had always said. Only this enemy was invisible, and a much more dangerous and formidable one than Sonny Corinthos.

As her mind wandered, her thoughts turned to Silas, he was supposedly this great doctor, renowned for his work in the field. Would she see him on a professional basis? Regardless of his excellent reputation, she didn't think she could deal with him smirking at her, his sarcastic barbs flying. And while he'd certainly seen her without clothes on, for some reason she didn't want to do that to Morgan, to have him know that Silas would be examining her in that way. _Damn Ava, what is that all about?_ Later, she reasoned with her subconscious. No, no matter how much of an expert Silas is on cancer, he wouldn't get to have her as a patient. Not in this lifetime. Finally satisfied with one decision she'd gotten to make herself, the next thing she heard was "Ms. Jerome?" being called out by one of the nurses.

_Oh god, please let this be nothing,_ she silently prayed.

***************************************************************************************************************

Morgan was waiting for her when she got home. His only goal for the evening was to reassure her. Of what exactly? His support? He had told her already she had that, unconditionally. He could only give her that right now. He searched her eyes for what she was feeling, and seeing only a protective wall, he began questioning her. Wanting to know if it hurt, what kind of side effects she would have, and what the next steps were. Ava answered all of his questions dutifully, but her resolve was weakening. She wanted the results, and she didn't want them. No matter what she did or where she went, this was weighing on her so fully that she wanted to scream. Sensing her torment, he pushed a little harder.

"Ava, how are you feeling about all of this? I know it can't be easy for you."

"What do you want me to say, Morgan? No, it's not easy."

"I just thought if you were able to talk about it, it might make you feel better. That's all." He looked down at her hand and took it in his, bringing it to his lips. C'mon Ava, let it out, he thought.

"Okay, fine. Yes, I could die. There, I said it. Out loud. Are you happy now?"

"No, of course not. But you don't have to pretend. Don't bullshit this, Ava, not with me."

She hesitated, then swallowed and let her overriding thought come out in a rush.

"I'm scared."

"I know you are. But you're going to be fine." He needed her to believe that, even if he wasn't sure himself. She couldn't afford to give up so easily, this soon. If it turned out to be bad, she needed to be strong, she would need to fight.

The tears welled up in her eyes, and Morgan's heart broke for her.

"But what if I'm not?"

"Then you'll do what you always do, attack it and kick its ass. Cancer should be freaking scared to death of Ava Jerome coming down the street."

His words had the intended effect, her smile was all Morgan needed to see.

"Mmm, funny."

"Yeah, I'm a funny guy."

It was times like this, where he seemed way more adult than his years. His arms went around her, and he knew, without a word, the only thing she wanted and needed.

**************************************************************************************************************

It was a few days later, and things hadn't slowed down while Ava's world was collapsing. Deliveries at the gallery, meetings with Julian, unanswered phone calls to Kiki, along with the usual daily grind kept her busy. She was at home, trying to muster up an appetite when the phone rang. Glancing at the number, she quickly saw it was the news that she wasn't sure if she was ready to receive. Her pulse started to race, and she grabbed the chair she was next to for support.

She took a deep breath, and grabbed it on the third ring. "Hello?" Her voice sounded scratchy, like someone who hadn't spoken in a long time.

"May I please speak with Ava Jerome?"

"This is she."

"Ms. Jerome, this is Dr. Baxter at Northside Hospital Breast Care Center. Is this a good time to talk?"

_Is it? Depends on what you're going to say._

"Yes, it's fine."

"How are you doing physically from the biopsy? Did you have any bruising or bleeding, any other problems?"

"No, everything was okay. No problems to report."

"Good, that's good to hear."

_Why is she drawing this out? This has to mean bad news. Why wouldn't she just say it?_

"Well, the reason I'm calling is that we have the results of your biopsy. We double-checked to make sure."

Silence.

"It's benign, Ms. Jerome. The lump is completely benign, you're absolutely fine."

Ava dropped into the chair and tears of relief began spilling themselves on to her face.

"You're sure? There's no mistake?"

"Nope, no mistake. This is great news. We'll want to do another check in six months just as a precaution, but if that goes the same way as I expect, there's no reason to do anything other than your annual mammogram."

"Thank you very much, Dr. I really appreciate all you've done."

"Not at all. My office will be in touch to schedule your next appointment. Have a good day."

Ava hung up the phone just as Morgan walked into the room. He'd just come from the gym, and he was sweaty but he looked fantastic. He saw her tears and ran over to her, but then he saw the sheer joy on her face.

"What is it? What'd they say?"

"It's benign, I'm fine, everything's fine." He let out a loud "Yes!" and pumped his fist before scooping her up off the ground and spinning her around. Ava was too happy to object, besides his elation was infectious.

"Well, this calls for a celebration, don't you think? Stay here, I'll be right back."

Morgan went to the kitchen for a few minutes and returned with a tray.

"Champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries? Why, Morgan Corinthos, are you trying to seduce me?"

"Is it working?"

A Cheshire-cat like grin appeared on her face. She was definitely going to enjoy making up for lost time. Not to mention the fact that her hunger had suddenly returned with a vengeance.

"Ava look, I just want you to know, I couldn't stand it if anything happened to you," his expression serious.

"Well, now you know how I felt when Julian ordered you killed."

He cupped her face and gave her a long, slow kiss. "I'm glad you're not planning on checking out any time soon. Now what do you say we go to the bedroom, and I take your mind off of all of this?"

Ava definitely needed no convincing on that one.

THE END


End file.
